


Flash Fiction (or something of the like)

by Cumberbatch Critter (ivelostmyspectacles)



Category: Houdini & Doyle (TV)
Genre: Angst, Caretaking, Developing Relationship, Domesticity, Drabble Collection, Drunken Shenanigans, F/M, Flash Fic, Friendship, Gen, Multi, Pregnancy, Sickfic, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-28
Updated: 2016-10-11
Packaged: 2018-08-18 07:36:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 1,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8154275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ivelostmyspectacles/pseuds/Cumberbatch%20Critter
Summary: A collection of H&D drabbles, ranging from super cheery to depressingly angsty. Featuring our favourite characters such as Harry Houdini, Adelaide Stratton, Harry Houdini, George Gudgett, Harry Houdini, and presumably Arthur Conan Doyle AND MORE in future drabbles.
 
Each chapter is separate, see individual chapter for any warning tags.





	1. "You have such a way with words." - Sickfic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, so yeah, a collection of H&D drabbles. Can I even call them drabbles? Basically I let people prompt me by telling me a sentence and I write the next seven (or so). I've been caught in the writer's block web so I started doing "flash fiction" as such.
> 
> Anyway, each chapter is separate unless noted; some drabbles are incredibly self-indulgent, some are canon compliant, some ~~are~~ will be crack, etc etc.
> 
> I do not own _Houdini & Doyle_!

"Well, someone has to!" Houdini joked, passing over the cup of tea. "Who else would charm you back to health if I didn't?" He sat down on the edge of the bed, turning his head to look at her as he asked "Are you feeling any better?"

Adelaide rolled her eyes tiredly, but smiled as she accepted the cup. "You do realise kindness isn't going to help the cold right?" she rasped, ducking her head over the steam.

"My kind of kindness will," Harry promised. And he leaned over to press a kiss against Adelaide's forehead, and smiled when Addie hummed in weary contentment.

 


	2. "Oh, God. Please be alive. Please still be alive." - Angst

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **TW for (non descriptive) character death.**

"Adelaide - Addie? - _please_." George would have cursed his shuddering voice if it had been any other place, any other time, any other _person_. Not Adelaide, please, not _Adelaide_ -

"Sergeant Gudgett... Sergeant- _George_." Doyle rest his hand on his shoulder; George wanted to flinch away, yell, scream, demand that he _help her!_ but there were tears in the good doctor's voice and Houdini hadn't said a _word_ since they'd all but crashed into the cellar. He'd been pale and silent and deadly still; George wanted to yell at him, too - _how did you let this_ happen _?_ \- while knowing full well the bloody Yank would have done _everything_ he could have-

"George, please," Doyle was saying, and there was the slightest edge of pleading horror in his voice for him to believe it, to let her go, to not prolong this pain -

\- and all George could do was comb his fingers through her bloody hair and bury his face in her shoulder and give up on choking back the tears burning his eyes.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some explanation: this stems off a role play on Tumblr where Harry and Addie had been kidnapped. Obviously this was the bad end. (Oh, and George is also hella in love with Addie.)


	3. "I'm scared." - Protective Harry

"Don't be." The response was reflexive; only afterwards did he realise the sanctity of _Adelaide Stratton_ admitting that she was scared. She just didn't admit things like that. Harry swallowed and groped for her hand in the darkness. "I won't let them hurt you, Addie. I promise." He squeezed at her fingertips, and sucked in a slow, determined breath when she squeezed at his hand - tightly - in return.

 


	4. "You don't expect the sun to admire you back." - Insecure Harry

"So, I'm the sun in this metaphor?" Adelaide asked, resting her hand on Houdini's arm.

"Of course you're the sun. You see anyone else shining that bright on a daily basis?"

"Will it go to your ego if I suggest that maybe you do?" she asked, and turned to beam at him - and didn't fail to notice the look that crossed his face before he turned away... like he _didn't_ believe that he was the centre of _anyone's_ universe underneath all that flambouyant attitude.

(God, she knew _that_ feeling.)

"I'm not sure I'm the sun, Harry," she said, patting his arm. And as he turned to look at her, "if anything, we're both like stars in the sky. That way we're still pretty, yes?" she said teasingly.

Harry looked at her for a long moment; then broke out in the most beautiful laughter Adelaide could recall ever hearing. "Yeah... we're still pretty," he said, clapping his hand over hers.

 


	5. "You don't expect the sun to admire you back." - George/Addie

"What are you talking about?"

George didn't grace the Yank with any more than a side glance as he replied, "Don't act like you don't know."

"You... you really think Addie doesn't love you," Harry said, eyebrows drawing together in a frown that made George want to laugh - self-deprecatingly, naturally - in his face.

"No, she loves _you_."

"George, honestly, she loves you, _too_."

"Yeah, right," he muttered, swiping a file from the desk before striding away, anything to get away from the self-righteous (lucky as hell) American who was courting the girl _he_ loved; Harry might say that Adelaide loved him, too, but it wasn't the same - in fact, it was probably more _pity_ than anything, and George _really_ didn't want to think about _that_.

Houdini might say that she loved him just as much, but... no, he didn't expect anyone was going to be able to convince him of that.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also explanation so in earlier aforementioned role play George and Harry and Addie kind of have this... yeah, threesome happening, so. That explains this. ~~Addie does love him just in a different way to how she loves Harry~~
> 
> ~~~~**Also you guys if you want to drop me a prompt sentence, you can leave them any time in the comments, or drop them in my Inbox on Tumblr (likely to see them quicker on the latter). If you want a certain pairing, even, feel free.** Just trying to get the creative juices flowing...


	6. "I'm in love with the bride." - Unrequited George/Addie

_**I'm in love with the bride.** _

George was happy for them; he really was. But he couldn't ignore the way that his heart twisted in his chest and his stomach fell to his feet and the heat rushed into his cheeks when he saw Adelaide walk down that church in her wedding gown.

Oh God, I'm still in love with her I'll never stop being in love with her she's getting married and her and the Yank will be disgustingly happy together and I'm going to be left off to the side while still being impossibly in love with her how can I do this how can I stand by and let her marry him-

Except Harry was good for her. Somehow, he was. And maybe George secretly thought that he could be better - that _they_ could be better - but as long as she was happy, and (almost begrudgingly) as long as Harry was happy...

... then he'd be in love with her, but he would ignore it, and he would be happy for her instead.


	7. "Oof, get off! You're too heavy!" - Harry/Addie domesticity

**"Oof, get off! You're too heavy!"**

"What??" Addie all but shrieked, grabbing ahold of Harry's shoulders. "Are you calling me fat?!"

"No, no, no, not at all!" Harry looped his arms around the small of her back, tracing little circles into her bare skin. "Just-"

"You're saying I'm fat!"

"I'm-" Harry flinched and barked a laugh when she pinched his shoulder "- not! You're perfect! Wonderful. Amazing."

"Really?" She folded her arms on his chest and dropped her chin on them.

"Yeah, course." He ran his hands up her sides, pulling her up an inch or two to press his lips to her forehead. "Gorgeous. Fantastic." He moved onto her lips, kissing her softly and slowly. "Sexy."

Lazy laughter for equally lazy kisses. _"Really?"_

"Really," Harry repeated.

Adelaide squealed when he dug his fingers into an arse cheek, and bit at his lip in retaliation while Harry simply laughed.


	8. "Buddy system is important!" - George & Harry drunkeness

**"Buddy system is important, you might get lost! Now gimme your hand!"**

"Don't touch me, Yank!" George jerked away and almost swung right into another person in the pub.

Harry grabbed his arm and jerked him back; he got the hand he had been searching for, hanging onto their sergeant's fingers a little too tightly. "Careful, George! C'mon, Addie's waiting... waiting for us!"

George dragged his gaze away from their combined hands - still primed to look like he was going to argue and not finding the words for it - and up towards the door at the mention of Adelaide. "Right... good." Now he was the one to start unevenly for the door; Harry was the one to stumble into the door frame this time and George grabbed ahold of his hand with both of his. _"Harry,"_ he laughed.

"Noo, I'm fine, come on, Addie, we need her hand too, come _on_ , George."

They were both giggling when they met up outside with Adelaide - who, of course started laughing, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Yeah this came off of a spectacular drunk RP no judgment)


	9. "Don't call me again." - Pregnant Addie/Harry & Doc Doyle

**_"Don't call me again."_ **

"But she's been up since two!"

_"Harry."_

Houdini could imagine the look on Doyle's face, something like resigned exasperation. Trust him, he felt even more stupid than he was sure he sounded, but...! Adelaide had been in the bathroom since two in the morning! This on and off vomiting! His fingers clutched tighter at the receiver on the phone.

 _"Morning sickness is common within the first trimester,_ expected. _It's a good thing. It means everything is progressing as it should."_

Harry blew out a breath and closed his eyes. Doyle had told him that at least twice in the past three weeks. It didn't seem to help.

_"Make sure she stays hydrated. If it gets overly excessive, I'll come over myself and talk to her. But I'm sure everything's fine. Grin and bear it, friend. Your life's about to change."_

A nervous laugh bubbled up, and he heard the toilet flush from the bathroom. "Stop reminding me, doc. I'm terrified."

_"Children do that to you."_

He spun around as the bathroom door clicked open, and Adelaide stumbled into the bedroom. Harry watched her from the library doorway. "Feeling any better?"

"No." Harry deflated a little, but Adelaide smiled wearily, resting her hand on her stomach as she shuffled across to him. "Are you talking to Doctor Doyle again?"

Doyle's laughter was muffled over the static in the phone.

"No," Harry retorted.

Addie fixed him with a _look_.

"... Yes," he admitted. "You've been sick so much, and he's a doctor, he's supposed to be marginally good at this, or so he says."

_"I beg your pardon?"_

Adelaide reached over to take the phone from him. "Good morning, Doctor Doyle. ... just the usual. ... yes... no. Yes. We will. Thank you, Arthur. Goodbye." She pulled the phone from her ear and set it back in the cradle. "Your concern is touching, Harry," she said, stretching a bit to kiss his cheek. "But I'm going to try and sleep now. Come back to bed?"

Harry wound an arm around her waist. "Yeah, 'course. Anything you want, _schatzi_." He kissed the top of her head and led the way back to the bedroom. Doubtless that he'd end up on that phone talking to Doyle again... he hoped he didn't _need_ to, but he was certain that he would.

Kids made you nervous. Yeah. He was never even this nervous for his _shows_...

Adelaide stopped; Harry glanced at her. And then she was breaking away to stride determinedly back for the bathroom, and Harry was left standing in the middle of the room, clenching his hands into fists.

... Heaven help them. It was gonna be a long nine months.


End file.
